I've been posting about the POSSIBILITY that the Feds could link a number of Federal violations to charge CR with a Federal murder charge (which does carry a death penalty), IF the Feds felt a need to do so. I don't think that this will happen in this case, but I posit it as a possibility that the State of Iowa could use these Federal charges to lever CR if necessary.
This, also, is always a back stop to high profile State cases, if the State case fails to convict, the Feds can offer a "2nd bite at the apple" without invoking double jeopardy. The Feds can possibly come up with their own list of separate charges, like the civil rights conviction of the NOPD Algiers Seven after Louisiana failed to obtain a conviction. All of this happening if the State of Iowa decides to ask for help. Like DCI asking for FBI assistance.
That having been said, I am certain that CR will be tried and convicted by the State of Iowa and will serve the rest of his life in an Iowa State Penatentary. According to the 10th amendment to the Constitution, Iowa has primacy in this matter and the Feds are out of it, unless Iowa wants their help. CR has an ICE detainer, and if he ever walks free, the Feds will take him, but not until then. Maybe ICE could ship CR's body home, when that time comes, to save Iowa the cost of a burial. The nice thing about the ICE detainer is that if CR ever makes bail (not gonna happen) Iowa can continue to incarcerate him based on the ICE detainer, to hand him over to the Feds at Iowa's discretion (NOT gonna happen).
There is no way that ICE is going to ride in, to take custody of CR and deport him to his home country where he might walk free (not now, not never). Not that his home country would let him walk free, because of the heinous nature of his crime (they have kids too). IF ICE were to attempt this, they would literally have to fight their way past Iowa LE, and I would love to see what ANY Supreme Court would have to say on the matter!
Something like this happened in Jefferson Parish shortly after H. Katrina. FEMA (Homeland Security) took control of all fuel stores in the area a week or more after the storm, with armed Federal officers. JP sent a fuel tanker to get diesel fuel (that the parish had already paid and contracted for) to run the generators at their central Emergency Operations Center at a local hospital. The tanker was turned away by the Feds, and JP was told they would get only whatever fuel FEMA thought they needed, send us your written request. Sheriff Harry Lee sent 3 squad cars of Depuities armed with M-16's and shotguns, along with the tanker, back to the tank farm. They got the fuel. Like I said, 10th Amendment primacy rights, in this case backed up by Colt. This would not make for good media optics in Iowa, for the rest of the country to see.
FEMA also cut the antenna leads to the EOC radios, to hook up to their own system, and told JP they did not need radios as "FEMA was now here". The Depuities also had a discussion with the FEMA IT guys, and the EOC radios were quickly reconnected. This all happened while JP was carrying out active search and rescue ops in a gulf front Parrish.